Keefe found that state and local governments pay college-educated workers an average of 10 percent less than private employers, though public workers had better benefits packages. Keefe determined that “there is no significant difference in total compensation between full-time state and local employees and private-sector employees.”

“Public-sector workers’ compensation is neither the cause, nor can it be the solution to the state’s financial problems,” Keefe wrote. “Only an economic recovery can begin to plug the hole in the state’s budget.”